Intro to Lift

 

Lift is the force that causes a plane to overcome 

gravity and stay in the air

 

 

  • Lift force comes from the interaction between the moving wing of the plane and the air in front of it

 

    • As the plane moves forward, the wings comes in contact with the air
    • This interaction causes a change in trajectory for both the air and the wing making the wing go up and the air go down
    • The more wing area, the more lift generated

 

 
  • If the plane wing is angled up, the plane will go up and the air will go down
  • The blue arrows indicate the direction of the air and the orange arrow indicates the direction of the lift force
  • If the plane wing is angled down, the plane will go down and the air will go up
  • The blue arrows indicate the direction of the air and the orange arrow indicates the direction of the lift force

 

    • The angle that the wing makes with the horizontal is called the angle of attack

 

*This force can be observed by running your hand through water or air at varying angles with respect to your direction of motion. You can watch the lift video for more information and a demonstration of this test.

 

The angle of attack is the angle that a plane flies relative to the ground (the plane tilts up, down, or flies straight ahead)

    • As the plane moves forward, the tilt of the plane causes the plane to interact with the air in front of it
    • The air pushes the plane either up or down depending on the angle of attack
      • As the angle of attack is increased, the amount of lift increases until a certain point at which the air will start to push the plane back instead of up

 

  • Angle of attack can be changed by shifting the center of gravity on the plane or adding flaps to the rear of the plane

 

 

 

 
  • If the plane is tilted up, the angle of attack is upwards and the lift will push the plane upward
  • The grey arrow indicates the direction that the plane is traveling
  • If the plane is tilted down, the angle of attack is downwards and the lift will push the plane downward
  • The grey arrow indicates the direction that the plane is traveling

 

 

Keep in mind: You can change center of gravity and lift to change the way the plane flies

Main Design Page